


Caught

by straightforwardly



Category: A Redtail's Dream (Webcomic)
Genre: M/M, Pre-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-09
Updated: 2017-11-09
Packaged: 2019-01-31 07:03:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,352
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12676824
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/straightforwardly/pseuds/straightforwardly
Summary: He could have gone back inside to get an umbrella—but, well, the rain was warm and it wasn’t far to walk anyways. Besides, this way he didn’t toy with being caught by his father. That just wasn’t a risk he was interested in today.Not when he had a feral little cat to check on.





	Caught

**Author's Note:**

> I’ve been going through my WIP files lately, and discovered this one laying around practically finished—it only needed a few tiny edits to be done. I first wrote this back in July. (And I think I wrote it based on an exchange prompt? But I didn’t note who it was for, so I decided to just post it normally.)

Joona’s fingers drummed on the still-dirty countertop, the flour sticking to his fingertips. A frown slipped onto his face before he could catch it. He wiped it away, and decided. A quick look around confirmed that though the door leading into the store proper was half-open, the only other person actually in the kitchen was his sister. 

Untying his apron, he said, “I’m going to go check on the cat.”

Jonna glanced over at him with a faint look of surprise. “Already? Shouldn’t you give him a little more time to calm down?”

“Nah, that won’t work,” Joona said, tossing his apron to the side. It landed right on top of the pile of dirty bowls, the strings dipping into the streaked remains of cake batter. He leaned under the counter, picking up one of the baskets which they normally used to let the bread dough rise. “Think I’ll bribe him with some treats instead.”

“Alright,” said Jonna cheerfully. Joona held the basket out to her, and she leaned over to their pile of rejected buns, picking out the crispiest ones to fill it with. She continued, “I guess it couldn’t hurt to make sure that he doesn’t need water or anything. And if he does end up scratching up your face, Riikka’s made up a new salve she’s been wanting to try out anyway. Just don’t let him take out your eyes.”

“I’ll do my best,” he promised as he took the basket back from her. Grabbing his coat, he ducked out from the backdoor. 

At some point since he’d last gone outside, it’d begun to lightly rain. He pulled his coat over his head with one arm to shield his face and the basket from the worst of it. He could have gone back inside to get an umbrella—but, well, the rain was warm and it wasn’t far to walk anyways. Besides, this way he didn’t toy with being caught by his father. That just wasn’t a risk he was interested in today.

Not when he had a feral little cat to check on.

Humming to himself, he dug out the key from behind the big herb pot at the side of the door, and unlocked the garden shed. The door creaked under his hand, and he ducked his head under the doorframe, straightening up once he was inside. 

The first thing he saw was Hannu’s glaring face, staring up from where they’d put him on the floor. He looked just as they’d left him, his hands still tied behind his back. 

“When I get out of here, I’m going to kill you,” Hannu said. “Both of you.” 

An unacknowledged tension slid from Joona’s shoulders. “Hey now. Is that anyway to treat someone who comes bearing gifts?” He raised his basket up in the air, letting his coat slop down his shoulders and puddle in a heap on the floor behind him. 

“That’s how I talk to people _who kidnap me_.”

Joona closed the door behind him. It wasn’t completely dark inside; light, made somewhat murkier by the rain, still streamed in through a pair of windows set high on the sides of the opposing walls. More spots of light and the fresh scent of rain leaked through small cracks in the boards. Pale shadows flickered over Hannu’s face, his glare still perfectly intelligible. 

Joona crouched down before him, setting the basket down to the side. Keeping his tone light, he said, “Well, you didn’t give us much of a choice. You should have known we wouldn’t let you do something that stupid.”

As he spoke, he looked Hannu over. Everything he saw confirmed his initial impression. Hannu looked as he always did: irritable, but not pale or stressed. Good. He’d been a bit worried earlier—he could admit that now—but it looked like everything really was fine. They hadn’t overstepped. 

“Since when is camping dangerous?” demanded Hannu.

“It’s not,” said Joona. “Unless you decide to go to the middle of nowhere, at this time of year, _alone_.” He patted Hannu on the shoulder, chuckling when it only made his scowl deepen. “Cheer up! It’s almost over. You only have to wait a few hours more for work to be over, and then we can all go together!” 

“You must be stupid if you think I’ll agree go anywhere with you after all this,” said Hannu. “And I _wasn’t_ going alone. Ville was going to come too.”

“Yeah, still stupid,” said Joona. “Ville’s sweet, but he’s just a little puppy. He panics when he sees moths; if you manage to piss off some dangerous animal, he’ll probably run away before he even thinks about it, and then whine like he’s dying when he figures out he’s alone.”

“Stop insulting my dog!” 

“Not insulting him. Just stating some facts. Here, I brought you some buns.” He reached over, pulling one out from the basket.

Hannu grumbled. “Do you really think I’m too stupid to realize when you’re trying to distract me?” More grumbling, too low for Joona to catch. Then: “And how do you expect me to eat anything when I’m tied up like this?”

Joona blinked. “How? Like this, of course.” He held the bun up to Hannu’s mouth.

Hannu jerked his head back. “No. No way.”

“Hm? Why not?”

Hannu pressed his mouth into a thin line and looked away. Joona studied him for a moment, then nodded, putting the bun back into the basket. “Okay. Need anything to drink, then? I could get you some water.”

“No.” Short. Sullen. 

“Hands feeling numb?”

“...No.” Hannu made it sound like it was the worst possible thing in the world to admit to. 

The answer itself was surprising, even if the tone wasn’t. Joona had half-expected him to say yes whether it was true or not, if only because it had a shot at convincing Joona to untie him—and so open up possibilities of escape. Hannu definitely wasn’t above lying, especially not for his own gain, so the fact that he hadn’t was… interesting. 

Joona decided not to comment on it. Hannu would only close off if he did. He was like a skittish horse in that way; you had to choose the right way to approach him or he’d spook. 

Instead, he said, “Well, that’s not surprising. I googled how to tie someone up safely a while back, so you should be fine for a good while.”

“Are you saying you two actually _planned_ this?”

Joona scratched his cheek, humming a little. “Not—exactly.” 

Hannu eyed him suspiciously. “And what is that supposed to mean?”

He could be evasive. It could be fun, watching Hannu get more and more frustrated as he tried to get a proper answer from him. He could already see the way he’d huff in irritation when he gave up, how he’d tilt his head downwards and glare at him through his fringe. And he really did like Hannu’s annoyed face an awful lot. Or— 

His voice went low and teasing. “Only that you look just as good tied up as I imagined. Too bad about the circumstances, huh?”

Hannu’s eyes went wide, and for a moment he almost looked innocent, pink dashing across his cheeks. Then he caught himself, and his eyes narrowed—though the blush remained. “What the hell? Don’t joke like that.”

His eyes fixed on Joona’s face, searching. 

Joona smiled. “Who said I was joking?”

He didn’t let Hannu have time to respond. Twisting his fingers into the strands of Hannu’s hair, he gave a gentle tug, and was rewarded with the quick end of a breath. He let go, and trailed his fingers down Hannu’s cheek, across the line of his jaw. He leaned in close, his eyes lingering deliberately on Hannu’s mouth.

Then he stood. Cheerfully, he said, “Well, I’d better be getting back before Dad starts wondering where I ran off to.” 

He savored the brief look of confusion flashing across Hannu’s face, before comprehension sunk in. “You—”

“See you in a few hours!”

The sound of Hannu’s cursing followed him out of the garden shed.


End file.
